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Faith
for the
Journey
Issue No.6 2014
this issue:
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The Secret to Letting Go
The Secret to Letting Go
Charles R. Swindoll
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11
Charles R. Swindoll
A Book Review
on Abraham
When a Couple
Prays Together
Nathan Potts
Dr. Dave Currie
You may have someone who means
a great deal to you, or you may be
clinging to one of your adult children
or a grandchild. They may be moving
in a direction that’s not your plan, you
may be afraid that they will do just fine
without you. Either way . . . let go.
To give up someone we love often feels
like the most senseless sacrifice of all,
which only intensifies the pain.
Insight for Living Australia — the Bible-teaching ministry of Charles R. Swindoll
|
www.ifl.org.au
Perhaps you have cultivated a
relationship with an individual, and
during that time your relationship with
God has declined. Still you cling to that
person, hoping your relationship with
the Almighty will somehow improve.
God may be saying to you, “Choose Me.
Sacrifice him/her!”
It is doubtful that God will expect you to
surrender your life all at once. Instead,
He patiently waits for you to sacrifice
yourself in small amounts, one decision
at a time, one day at a time, one person
at a time, so that you might enjoy an
ever-increasing intimacy with Him.
Why do you hesitate?
I’ll never forget the day my brother
dropped by my parents’ house before
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he and his family headed to South
America as missionaries. Now, you have
to appreciate the kind of man my father
was. Look up the word responsible in
the dictionary, and I’m surprised his
picture isn’t there! To him, risks are
for those who fail to plan. Responsible
people leave nothing to chance. As far
as he was concerned, faith is something
you exercise when your three backup
plans fall through and you have run out
of every other option. My brother, on
the other hand, is stimulated by faith.
He has lived his entire adult life on the
raw edge of faith. To my brother, life
doesn’t get exciting until God can get
him through some specific challenge.
That drove our Dad nuts!
After supper, my mother and sister
went into the kitchen, leaving my father
at one end of the table, my brother at
the other, and me sitting on one side.
Then it started. “Son, how much money
do you have for your long trip?”, “Oh, Dad,
don’t worry about it. We’re gonna be fine.”
Before he could change the subject,
my father pressed the issue. “Son,
you’re gettin’ ready to go down to South
America! How much money have you got?”
With that, my brother dug into his
pocket, pulled out a quarter, set it on its
edge on his end of the table, then gave it
a careful thump. It slowly rolled past me
all the way to my father’s end of the table
and fell into his hand. Dad said, “That’s
all you’ve got?” Orville broke into a big
smile and said, “Yeah. Isn’t that exciting!”
That was not the word my father had in
mind at the moment. After a heavy sigh
and a very brief pause, Dad shook his
head, looked up with a frown, and said,
“I just don’t understand you.” My brother
grew serious. Looking Dad in the eyes,
he answered, “No, Dad, you never have.”
I like to picture my brother and father
two ends of a pole used by a tightrope
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walker for balance. My brother leaned
on faith alone and made very few hardand-fast plans. I don’t know how he
actually made the trip or how he and
his wife took care of all their little kids,
but they never went hungry. And they
served in South America for more than
three decades. My father, on the other
hand, was a man who emerged through
the Great Depression. He lived in fear
of poverty his whole life and never
experienced the joy of trusting God in
faith—the kind of faith that made my
brother smile so big that day. My father
was a believer, but he never understood
the life of faith. Sometimes balancing
these two extremes between faith
and fear causes us as Christians some
apprehension as we walk the tightrope
of life. However, if God requires you to
fall off the wire, fall on the side of faith.
Resource of the Month
A Woman’s Joy: Loving the
Life God Gave You
It won’t be easy. Sacrifice doesn’t come
naturally. It’s a discipline that requires
faith—a trust that the Almighty will
look after your needs in ways that you
will never see until you allow Him the
opportunity.
By the way, this principle of sacrifice
extends into every area of our lives.
Consider Abraham, for example. The
Lord commanded the old man to
sacrifice his only son—the very one
through whom God had promised
to fulfil His promises. When we read
Genesis 22, we see that this faithful
servant said by his actions, “Lord, You’re
more to me than any relationship ever will
be. If You tell me to put the most important
person in the world to me on an altar, I’ll
do it . . . I’ll sacrifice him.”
(184 Page, Paperback Book)
Unlike my brother, when Abraham
rolled his quarter across the table, as it
were, it landed in the hands of One who
fully understood—and even rewarded—
Abraham’s act of faith.
Women have always held a vital place in the body
of Christ. The Lord Jesus Himself validated the
significance of women in radical ways! That’s
why Insight for Living Ministries has put together
A Woman’s Joy: Loving the Life God Gave You,
written by women for women.
$9.00
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Meeting God in
a Familiar Places
5
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light found in this message of hope and the accompanying
radiant paintings of home and countryside.
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Abraham:
One Nomad’s Amazing
Journey of Faith
Charles R. Swindoll
When I reflect on the writings of Chuck
Swindoll, I consistently gravitate to what
I think are Chuck’s “legacy” writings.
Chuck has written many great books, but
I consider the nine biographical portraits
of significant biblical characters as timehonoured treasures. The most helpful
quality of these books is the well-defined
and perceptive applications that are
drawn from biblical principles. Chuck
provides invaluable insights into the
lives of characters such as Moses, David,
Paul, Esther and Job. These characters
wrestle with trusting in a sovereign God
and his promises. The applications are
purposeful, encouraging, challenging
and applicable to everyday life. Chuck
consistently uses the failings and
triumphs of these biblical characters to
challenge readers to live lives that yield
to God’s will.
After nearly six years since the
publication of his last character book
Chuck has recently released a character
book titled Abraham: One Nomad’s
Amazing Journey of Faith. The release
coincides with the global broadcast
teaching series beginning August 2014
and concluding in November 2014.
Front Book: Abraham, 262-page Paperback,
Bible Companion (22 chapters).
Back Book: Abraham, 288 Pages, Hardback Book.
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Abraham was the father of the nation
of Israel and the father of all who
believe God’s unconditional covenant
promise to Abraham (Rom. 4:16). This
covenant underpins God’s dealings with
his people, both in the past and into
the future. Through Abraham’s seed,
Christ our redeemer was born, died and
resurrected and one day will return to
reign on earth. Abraham was a man of
faith. However throughout his life he
faced many challenges. As Chuck says
“the Bible doesn’t try to paint its heroes
as anything but real people with real
flaws”. At times Abraham doubted and
yielded to his own temptations but God
in His grace continued to be faithful to
His promise. Through God’s leading and
guidance Abraham learned significant
life lessons. He walked by faith and is an
example to us all.
Readers will find this book and series
challenging as well as encouraging.
As we strive to serve the Lord within
our culture we can learn from the life
of Abraham and apply the timeless
principles of how to walk by faith.
This resource is now available and I
encourage you all to get a copy and take
some time meditating upon the truths
presented and to “slow down and grow
deep”, marvelling at God’s love and His
willingness to guide your steps. God is
ever faithful and gracious and by his
Spirit, He is developing our walk of faith.
by Pastor Nathan Potts
Insight for living Australia
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(205 Page, Hardback Book)
(14 Messages on 14 CDs & Workbook)
$4.00
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God called Abraham to be His friend. Henry
Blackaby uses the example set by Abraham to
show how God uses difficult events, traumatic
circumstances, and trying life experiences to lead
us to spiritual maturity. Readers will learn how
God interacts with His people to transform them
into men and women He can call friends.
In Fascinating Stories of Forgotten Lives:
Rediscovering Some Old Testament Characters,
Chuck Swindoll reveals the crucial roles played
by a number of lesser-known Old Testament
characters. From Achan to Uzziah and through
incredible victories and destructive defeats, God’s
sovereignty shines through these lives.
When A Couple
Prays Together
By Dr. Dave Currie
praying with her that night. The next
morning he said, “I heard her heart. I
know it will allow me to get closer to her.
I am so excited.” That’s the truth.
2. You’ll face your stresses together at
the deepest level. Whether it’s life or
family problems, admitting them and
asking God for wisdom and help is a good
thing. We are called to give Him all our
worries and cares because He cares for
us (1 Peter 5:7). It’s called crisis intimacy.
You’re in this together.
3. You’ll keep heading in the same
direction as a couple. Unity is a good
thing. Build according to His plan,
maintaining a shared commitment
toward a better marriage. “Unless the
LORD builds the house, they labour in
vain who build it…” Psalm 127:1.
4. You’ll have a better chance of staying
close to the Lord. A soft heart is a
responsive heart. A sinful heart separates
you from God. By keeping surrendered
to Him, you can more easily hear and do
what He wants you to do as a partner,
a parent, and a person. Hebrews 3:12
calls us to watch out for each other for
“a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns
away from the living God.”
What does a couple praying together
look and feel like?
Couple prayer is a husband and wife
who, being honest with God and with each
other, join together regularly, in spite of
their marital imperfections or personal
brokenness, to humbly reach out to Him
for strength, direction, and perspective.
They go to God as one. They want His will for
their lives and family.
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THE BENEFITS OF PRAYING
TOGETHER
Let me try to convince you to start with
my top 10 benefits of praying together.
Here’s what it could do for your marriage.
1. You’ll hear and understand the heart of
your spouse. It will bring you a growing
emotional connection. I met a man in
his sixties who had never prayed with
his wife. He took my challenge to start
5. You’ll show love for your spouse
as you pray with and for him or her.
You know your spouse’s needs and
concerns. Love is lifting them up to the
Lord and in so doing, helping to carry the
burden (Galatians 6:2).
6. You’ll enjoy the sense of being
anchored to God with your lives. There
is something bigger going on than just
the two of you. God is with you. He’ll
never leave you and knows all you are
facing. Let Him be the anchor for the
soul of your marriage, firm and secure
(Hebrews 6:19).
7. You’ll have a softer, more forgiving
heart. Face it. You can’t expect God’s
forgiveness if you won’t extend it to your
spouse. Go to God either relationally
connected or asking Him to help
you reconnect. Since you can’t play
games with God, why not quit playing
games with each other. If you walk in the
light of the Lord, you’ll have fellowship
with each other (1 John 1:7).
8. You’ll keep humble as people and
as a couple on your knees. We do need
God to make sense out of life. Tell Him
so. Fight your human nature that strives
for independence from God. Remember,
prayer is the two of you as creatures
humbly kneeling together before your
Creator. He is sovereign.
9. You’ll defeat the enemy who wants
to divide you. The Devil prowls around
like a roaring lion looking for a couple
to devour (1 Peter 5:8). Through your
sincere and alert prayers together, you
unleash the power of God in your lives
and marriage. The enemy cannot touch
you with his schemes.
10. You’ll prevent your own divorce.
Couples with a shared faith and common
spiritual values are amongst those who
enjoy a longer, more satisfying marriage.
Research from a 1997 Gallup Poll by
the National Association of Marriage
Enhancement showed that couples who
pray together daily have less than one
per cent chance of experiencing divorce.
Go figure. God does have a plan—pray
together.
“A family that prays together stays
together.” This may appear to be just an
old familiar saying but could it be true?
It seems so.
Dr. Dave Currie
Founder & President
of Doing Family Right
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Bob the Tomato tries to bring the
Bible story of Abraham and Sarah
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Stand up, stand tall, stand
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delightful stories of their
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Your favorite Bible stories come alive in this
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illustrations and easily understand the words taken
from the Contemporary English translation.
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Faith for the Journey
Daily Meditations on Courageous
Trust in God
$16.95
If life is a journey, it certainly
is a bumpy one. In this thirtyday devotional, Chuck Swindoll
inspires us to develop courageous
trust in the God who is in charge
of our journey. Each day’s devotion
uses the life of Abraham to illustrate
what it means to dare to trust. Just
like Abraham, we may not know
where God is leading us or how He
will fulfil His promises to us, but
we are called to trust. Let Chuck
Swindoll be your daily companion,
encouraging you to put your life
into God’s capable hands.
FFJLB
On The Air
7th of August - 6th of November:
Abraham: One Nomad’s Amazing
Journey of Faith: A Classic Series
Coming Series
November - Adventuring with God
December - What if. . . ?
December - Holiday Message
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